Deborah S. Welch

Deborah Welch,a Principal in Respect, Incorporated, started her 20 year career in industry in Finance and used those skills, as well as those in marketing and strategic planning to successfully manage a $50 million international electronics business for DuPont. Her tenure as a business manager, and as a member of the leadership team for a $500 million films business, taught her the importance of human capital.  

As a manager, she integrated multi-cultural team building interventions into a global business meetings that significantly improved implementation of business plans, thereby increasing profilts. She designed a leadership development program for the exempt manufacturing staff that added flexibility and competitiveness to the business. On a larger scale, Ms. Welch co-designed several multi-day interventions focused on leadership development, trust and teamwork. These efforts combined with her extensive cost study and restructuring plan, contributed to a significant financial turnaround.

While at DuPont, Ms. Welch joined corporate leadership on the cutting edge of diversity training as a member of the original "CoreGroup" exploring issues of race and gender, and as a co-designer of the first Women's Conference, a three-day experience for 150 women. Externally, she worked with representatives of the Digital Equipment Corporation and Procter and Gamble to share technology for moving diversity through major organizations. Ms. Welch presented at the American Society of Women Personnel Administrators conference in Washington, DC. on these issues.

Ms. Welch presented at the 1993 University of Cincinnati Diversity conference and conducted workshops accross the US on sexual harassment for Federal Publications. She is a judge for the Delaware Quality Consortium's annual awards, and spoke about diversity and it's link to quality at the 1994 and 1995 Delaware State meeting of the American Society of Quality Control. Through Respect, she has been featured in Numerous newspapers and books, and often speaks before professional organizations, including the Delaware Employers' Council, the Inscape Publish International Business Conference, and the Women's Entrepreneurial Conference of the Chamber of Commerce of New Castle County.

Deborah has served as a chairperson of the largest fund-raiser for the Delaware Division of the American Cancer Society. She is a member of the Board of Directors of the Delaware Chapter of the Society of Human Resources, and the Forum of Executive Women. Ms. Welch graduated from Juniata College with a BS degree in Business Administration.